Quartieri sani e inclusivi: il design per lo sviluppo di strategie e scenari progettuali per città prossime e in salute e per l’invecchiamento attivo della popolazione

The article discusses the initial findings of the “Quartieri Sani HUB” research project. The overall objective is to explore opportunities for defining design scenarios and strategic factors to improve public space conditions. The project seeks to promote active and healthy aging of the population in the metropolitan city of Florence through a systemic vision and starts from the assumption that citizens' mental and physical health, social inclusion, and participation are closely related to the built environment in which communities live. Therefore, six months after the start of the project, the research team laid the groundwork for developing a conceptual framework at the micro level and defining the preliminary operational model. These create the conditions for the subsequent macro-phase of activation on the ground. Moreover, the paper frames the theoretical support topics about the main project themes - proximity, healthy lifestyles, and inclusion - and identifies specific categories of products and product/service systems whose tangibility affects the definition of a healthy and inclusive neighborhood. The conclusion highlights the contribution of design in this research area and the need for a change in approach to implementing the debate at the interdisciplinary level.